The Damned to play special 40th anniversary gig

Captain Sensible and The Damned to mark 40 years since first UK punk-rock single, New Rose, with a concert at London’s Royal Albert Hall in May 2016

The Damned are to mark the 40th anniversary of the first UK punk-rock single, New Rose, with a concert at London’s Royal Albert Hall in May 2016.

The band will play a “three-hour setlist of every song we’ve ever recorded”, guitarist Captain Sensible said, including their famous hits I Just Can’t Be Happy Today Smash It Up and their 1986 cover of Paul Ryan’s Eloise.

The Dammed are still performing regularly, often with middle-aged fans indulging in some nostalgic slam-dancing in celebration of a band that includes the preposterously named keyboard player Monty Oxymoron. Captain Sensible joked that rival punk contemporaries The Clash and the Sex Pistols will also soon be celebrating their 40th anniversaries but “not until 2017”.

While The Clash and The Sex Pistols gained more acclaim, the Damned led the way in making punk commercial and were the first UK punk band to tour America. The band were also part of the early early package tours of Stiff artists, and the tours were hotbeds of creative rivalry, with the acts splitting into factions and occupying their own spaces on the tour bus. Once, the Damned played a prank on a sleepingElvis Costello by tipping the contents of an ashtray into his mouth, then setting fire to his shoelaces to wake him up.

During the eighties The Dammed started to distance themselves from their established punk sound, successfully navigating their way to the forefront of the UK’s burgeoning Gothic rock scene.

Related Articles

News has been released that will make all Iron Maiden fans very happy. From Loud Wire. Iron Maiden has settled their nearly yearlong legal dispute over the classic 1982 track “Hallowed Be Thy Name.” The suit filed by retired band manager Barry McKay claims that Maiden’s Steve Harris and Dave Murray reproduced major parts of the British […read more…]

Like this:

We’re quite discerning about our Autographs. You won’t find our site flooded with them since we only seek out those that have specific provenance. Some also have great stories. Most have been cherished and loved by past collector owners. Whether you collect signed records, CDs or pages from Autograph books, […read more…]

Like this:

From the Guardian LP sales are booming – but 48% of people who buy them don’t actually listen to them. Here are some alternative uses…. Sales of vinyl records hit a 25-year high in 2016. However, a new report has revealed some weird facts. Apparently, 48% of people who buy […read more…]

Jobs at 991.com

You’ll be reasonably knowledgeable about ‘rare’ records already, since you probably live and breathe them – but the learning doesn’t stop. You’ll work alongside our product buyers and you will be responsible for describing and [...read more...]